The Positive & Negative Influences of Parents on Their Children

As a parent, it's your responsibility to provide the basic necessities such as food, clothing and shelter to your child. You aren't responsible only for your child's temporal and physical needs, but you also influence his general growth and development.

Certain facets of parenting and child-rearing help shape the type of adult your child will one day become, while helping him increase his self-awareness in the process. Consider how your parenting practices are affecting your child to evaluate your skill and proficiency as a parent.

Parenting Style

The type of parenting style you adopt affects the way your child reacts to you and others in her life. An authoritative parent allows feedback from the child, teaching her that her opinion is valuable. The authoritarian parent leaves little room for negotiation and is less warm, often resulting in a dependent or rebellious child.

A permissive parent mostly allows a child to make her own decisions, with little demands, creating a child who lacks self-control. An uninvolved parent simply removes himself as an authority figure and doesn't take an interest in his child's life, leading to a child who is permissive and undemanding in disposition as well.

Personal Example

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The way you interact with others and react to various situations creates a valuable example for your child.

When you're calm, helpful and act with integrity, your child understands that behavior and holds it as a priority in his life.

If you're dishonest, quick to anger or lazy, those behaviors are passed down to your children.

Certain psychological diseases also take a toll on your child. PsychCentral contributor Richard O'Connor notes that depression often has a cyclical pattern between parents and children, proving that children simply act how they've learned is acceptable through their parents.

Family and Relationships

The way you approach your relationship toward other family members in general often affects the way your child interacts with others. For instance, a divorce can make your child feel angry and abandoned if not handled properly. The American Academy of Pediatrics, on their HealthyChildren.org website, notes that an amicable divorce that includes compromising and joint custody agreements is often best for the children's well-being. When it comes to your approach to relationships in general, it's likely your attitude and approach that affects your child, not the actual person or the gender of those involved.

Parental Involvement

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Your involvement in your child's success is an accurate indicator of overall achievement. Leave your child to flounder on his own and he may not do as well as a child who had encouragement and support at home. The Michigan Department of Education points out that parental involvement is twice the predictor of child academic success than that of socioeconomic status. Your child looks to you for support and encouragement, but when you take a passive role in his education, your behavior could result in negative implications.